A1 to close in North Yorkshire at the weekend

Drivers are being warned that the A1 in North Yorkshire will be closed overnight on Saturday July 4 while a temporary bridge is put in place over the road near Catterick.

The bridge will be erected to allow pedestrians and utility services to pass over the A1 while the nearby Fort Overbridge is demolished and rebuilt as part of the major road scheme to upgrade the busy route motorway standard between Leeming and Barton.

The northbound carriageway will be closed between junction 50 (Baldersby) and Scotch Corner.

Southbound it will be closed between Scotch Corner and junction 51 (Leeming).

The closure will take place from 8pm Saturday July 4 until 11am Sunday July 5.

Highways Agency project manager, Tom Howard, said: “This is a significant milestone for the scheme and a complex piece of engineering.

“The closures have been carefully scheduled to minimise disruption to drivers and will be put in place when traffic flows are at their lowest. We thank drivers for their patience.”

Clearly signed diversions will be in place and drivers are advised to allow an extra 15 to 30 minutes to their journey time.

Once completed the A1 Leeming to Barton scheme looks set to unlock growth and boost the economy by creating a continuous motorway-standard route between London and Newcastle (including the M1 and A1M). It will also improve journey times and increase safety say government officers.

When the scheme opens to traffic in 2016/17, journey times between Leeming and Barton are expected to be reduced by about 20 per cent, and over a 26-year period, the improvements are predicted to save around 20 lives and prevent around 450 serious accidents.

The work is also estimated to generate 750 jobs in the construction industry over three years.

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